Mentioned the name Sulaiman, my thoughts were always about this, the name ‘man of peace’ in the form of Suleiman the Magnificent, one of the great Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, who conquered the Christian strongholds of Belgrade, Rhodes, and most of Hungary and whose fleet dominated the seas from the Mediterranean to the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf.
And maybe the Prophet Sulaiman, who has been given control over various elements, such as the wind and transportation, and command over the Jinn and animals.
But not this Sulaiman.
I met up with him at the Indira Gandhi International Airport last April. Somehow as I penned my thoughts in my Facebook previously on something wrt the Law of Attraction, the magnetism towards him was damn great. It’s like my thoughts had the energy which attracts whatever that I’m thinking of. That particular day at the airport, I was thinking how to say my prayer in peace*. Then, the Almighty sent me His ‘man’.
What attracted me was initially the way he was dressed. Reminds me of the blessed Sahabah. He dressed in a robe, unlike the typical Tablighi Jamaat brothers or the white ones usually worn by the Arabs. It’s something in between. That nice beard. The nicely trimmed short moustache. The North Face backpack. The slippers (though he later admitted that my Crocs Off Road was better alternative for Jamaat journeys).
My brother Sulaiman was seriously mixed up. He’s an American but has a Caucasian, African and Cherokee origins. And he looks like er, er maybe a Malay. He has a kid from his previous marriage. His wife was from Eritrea (near Sudan). He is now finishing his ‘Alim Studies in one of the madrasah in San Diego, California.
After meeting him while taking wudhu’ in the gents, I got the honour to say the Isya’ prayer with him as the imam. Somehow, the Almighty works in magnificent ways, even my seat in the MAS A320 was next to him. He was on his way back to LA from Delhi, via KL. We chatted (intelligent discourse, I would say), ate the mutton briyani (served by beautiful stewardess) to our filled and said goodbye after Subuh prayer in one of the surau in KLIA.
Jazakallah. Hope to see you again brother.
* previously at the Tom Bradley Airport Los Angeles early 2008, the Almighty also send me one of his slave, just to accompany me to say my solat.
